And in unpublished research from previous studies,
they examined production values in the NCAA women’s
and men’s basketball tournaments. “We saw differences
in terms of camera angles, graphics, and the quality of
camera work,” she says. “If you’re watching an event live,
and the game seems slower, part of that might be due to
the fact that there are only one or two camera angles or the
camera is situated really far back in the stadium—so you’re
not getting the close-up shots, replays, or exciting color
commentary, all of which are going to make it feel like an
exciting game.” In these cases, viewers less well-versed in
the rudiments of television may not notice differences in
production values, but simply assume women’s sports are
less exciting than men’s.

Gaining visibility

But if women are playing sports at unprecedented levels,
does it really matter if they’re visible? Szalach thinks so.

Athletes can empower children, she says, giving them“something to aspire to be and do with their talentsand skills.”“Mia Hamm was my and my sister’s favorite playergrowing up,” she says, describing her own role model. “Wehad a cutout of her in our basement. We loved her. We hadher jerseys and we dressed up like her for Halloween. Shewas just an all-around great player.”White agrees, “I also think it’s important for ourculture in general to value women. My oldest boy justturned four, and his favorite player is Tamika [Catchings].He’s around our players all the time, so sometimeshe doesn’t even realize that boys play basketball. Hesees the Pacers, but he’s saturated with the Fever andwomen’s basketball, because that’s what we watch. So heautomatically respects the things that our players do inorder to be successful.”And for Szalach, visibility doesn’t benefit just thespectators. “Whenever we have a big crowd, we notice thatatmosphere of the crowd really enjoying the game, beinginto it, and cheering us on. It plays a big role in how we steponto the field.”Cooky and her colleagues make three key suggestionsfor more equitable coverage of women’s sports: increasebroadcast coverage to between 12 to 18 percent, presentwomen’s sports with a quality equivalent to the typicalmen’s broadcast, and hire on-camera sports anchors whoare capable of and willing to do both. We have to demandmore coverages as a society, agrees White. “We demandit by watching it and continuing to hound the networksand affiliates for more coverage. We’re not going to go from0 to 100, but there has to be more, and we can’t demand itby being silent.”

By Stacey Mickelbart.

Indiana Fever coach Stephanie
White advises point guard Briann
January during a game against the
San Antonio Stars, which the Fever
won 83-76. Photo by Ron Hoskins/NBAE.

Szalach and her fellow midfielder
Andrea Petrina celebrate Petrina’s
goal, which went upper 90 from
about 30 yards out. The team
beat Illinois 3-1 (page 27). Photo by
Charles Jischke.